Up in smoke: Tobacco taxes to rise Sunday

Staff report

With state cigarette taxes to more than double Sunday, experts say some smokers might quit, some will shop elsewhere and some will just pay the extra fee.

Earlier this month Gov. Pat Quinn signed a package of bills into law that will slash health care coverage for the poor and hike cigarette taxes by $1-a-pack to help pay for the struggling Medicaid program.

Quinn had warned that without action the health care program would collapse under a mountain of debt.

The $1-a-pack increase will more than double Illinois' cigarette tax, which has stood at 98 cents for years.

Quinn argues the measure will encourage people to stop smoking or to never start, while opponents say it will simply force smokers to buy cigarettes across state lines.

The hike is expected to generate an estimated $350 million from new taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products.

Current local and state taxes on a pack of smokes in Chicago are $3.66, according to the anti-smoking Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. The $1 increase would bring the combined tax rate to $4.66 in Chicago, behind only the $5.85 per pack rate in New York City.

Illinois' cigarette tax now ranks 32nd among the states and the District of Columbia. The state would move up to the 16th highest tax rate, behind states that levy $2 or more for a pack of cigarettes, the anti-tobacco group said.

A spokesman for tobacco retailers predicted sales of cigarettes would drop by about 20 percent because of the tax increase. An official for the so-called roll-your-own cigarette machine industry said new taxes and regulations would essentially ban the machines in Illinois.

Officials plan to step up efforts against anyone re-selling cigarettes from out of state in Illinois.